Weekly Photo Challenge: Between #2 06-23-14

Here is my second entry for this weeks photo challenge “between.” The lava cactus in the Galapagos Islands grows between the cracks of the lava formation. The plant has soft furry spines and grows in clumps to a height of about two feet. The new growth is yellow, turning to brown, which darkens to gray with age. The creamy white flowers are visible in the early morning hours only, and normally fade by 8 in the morning. As its name suggests, the lava cactus occurs exclusively on barren lava fields at sea level. Not only is it one of the few plants that survive in this extremely dry, challenging habitat, it is often one of the first plants to colonize on a fresh lava flow.